Farmers Weekly

1 week ago | fwi.co.uk | Aly Balsom

Anything that can be done to make an intensive block-calving period run as smoothly as possible will be advantageous for a busy farm team. It stems from preparing staff, processes and cows ahead of time. Whether calving in spring, autumn or both, the essential ingredients for an effortless calving period are body condition, mineral status and calving ease.

1 week ago | fwi.co.uk | Peter Hill

A hoe that tackles weeds across a wide range of sizes both between and within rows uses rapid image analysis to detect and target the offending plants. It uses air-activated “clap hands” elements to take out weeds from the two-leaf stage in most crops where plant spacing is 8cm or more in rows from 25cm apart. See also: Buyer’s guide: Camera-guided sugar beet hoesIn sugar beet, the machine can be operated at up 5kph, says manufacturer Ullmanna, with a six-row unit covering around 1ha/hr.

1 week ago | fwi.co.uk | Albie Matthews

The eighth annual Britain’s Fittest Farmer competition kicked off on 18 June at the Lincolnshire Show, under a scorching sun that added to the challenge. Farmers from across the region battled the heat and each other in tests of strength and stamina, flipping tractor tyres, pulling 4x4s, and lifting heavy sandbags. Friends and family cheered on the competitors, creating an atmosphere buzzing with camaraderie and determination.

1 week ago | fwi.co.uk | Philip Clarke

Farm organisations have expressed relief that autumn muck and slurry spreading will be allowed to continue, but farmers will in future have to provide a much clearer justification for doing so. Fears that autumn spreading could be banned were triggered when Defra announced a snap review of the practice late last year. This was in response to a High Court case that had criticised the guidance Defra gives the Environment Agency when it comes to enforcing the Farming Rules for Water.

1 week ago | fwi.co.uk | Philip Case

NFUS president Andrew Connon © MAG/Philip Case NFU Scotland leaders have vowed they “will not give up the fight” to stop damaging changes to farm inheritance tax, warning the UK government’s proposed reforms pose a direct threat to the future of family farms across the country.